“Yes, I know, objectively, that there are things wrong with my country. But I was born here; my country is like my mother, and for that, I love her and do not count her faults.” — a friend from one of the ‘Stans.

Someone recently referred to my blog as “the high mountains of Turdistan,” and I thought, “Gosh, that’s awfully unfair to the ‘Stans. What did they ever do to warrant the comparison?”

So this is a post about the ‘Stans.

1. Kazakhstan:

Yeah, I bet you didn’t know that Kazakhstan is also Middle Earth.

The Kazakhs have some beautiful cities:

Scenes of Astana, Kazakhstan’s capital

And understand the art of dramatic lighting:

Almaty, Kazakhastan’s biggest city

Even the Kazakh flag is awesome:

2. Kyrgyzstan:

Kyrgyzstan has got to be one of the most obscure countries in the world. It’s also one of the most isolated–it’s landlocked, the furthest landlocked country from the sea, and its rivers don’t even empty into the sea.

Tajikistan appears to be a country on the upswing. Their homicide rate has fallen from 7.6 (per 100,000) in 1997 to a mere 1.6 in 2011. The US’s was 4.7 in 2012. (Though I hear getting enough food is still an issue.)

They have some nice architecture and monuments, though they may be overspending on them:

And yes, of course, they have mountains:

Turkmenistan:

The Door to Hell.

Uzbekistan:

Uzbekistan has high-speed rail networks with shinkansen:

And they have some of the world’s loveliest subway and train stations:

Pakistan:

All right, I’ll admit it: people who know better than I do claim that Pakistan is a “failed state.” Or as a friend put it, “You think you have issues with the Taliban? We have to live next door to them!”

Still, I hope things work out for the Pakistanis. Especially since they have nukes.

Plus, they have some nice university architecture:

Islamia College University in Peshawar, Pakistan

Afghanistan:

Yes, the Afghan people know the problems their country face. They’ve been invaded by the Soviets, taken over by the Taliban, then invaded by the Americans, etc. etc. It’s still their country, and chances are they aren’t getting a new one, so they’ll take their pride where they can get it.

Of course, Afghanistan is the kind of place that historians, anthropologists, and archaeologists love. The area has a history going back perhaps 50,000 years, was part of the Indus Valley civilization–one of the first civilizations in the world–and has been a major cultural meeting point along the Silk Road for thousands of years.

Buddhist Stupa in Mes Aynak, Afghanistan

The ruins at Mes Aynak go back at least 5,000 years, making the complex one of the most valuable currently-being-excavated locations in the world. Unfortunately, the whole place is slated for destruction via mining–if you’re interested in saving Mes Aynak, go here.

16 thoughts on “Some Pictures of the ‘Stans”

I’m sure they have some cruddy looking cities, too, but new cities often look good just by virtue of being new. Take Tokyo, rebuilt from scratch since 1945. Unfortunately, many American cities are awful; our inner cities look strikingly like 3rd world slums.

Most of the buildings built a thousand years ago looked like crap and got torn down ages ago. Palaces look good because they’re palaces. Places built to look like palaces today, eg, Toshkent Station, will keep looking nice so long as they’re maintained.

If we get wealthy enough it may be possible to have most buildings up to palace quality. It is also fascinating also that the natural world that is untamed by man manages to maintain its breathtaking beauty after millenia. Perhaps also we may take cues from that.

Interesting thought. I have read that people test as more stressed (or was it dumber?) after a ten minute walk through a city than after a ten minute walk through nature, but you know how psychiatry and reproducibility are. Still, I know that I feel suddenly joyous when out among the trees.

My, from some imposing trio (1st pic), the almighty Almaty, an unusual mosque.. etc..etc.. to the very door to Hell! Now I guess I have a pretty good idea what ‘Stans’ stand for: “Stunning!” ( >-I for the images)